Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced that two men have been indicted for stealing 17 Social Security numbers and creating a full identity profile for each of them -- including driver's licenses, bank statements, email addresses and more -- then using the fake documents to apply for loans in the victims' names, which they quickly withdrew and never repaid.
District Attorney Gonzalez said, "These defendants allegedly perpetrated a sophisticated scam that used stolen identities to defraud financial institutions. The health of our banking system depends on honest dealings, and my office will continue working with other partners to ensure that fraudsters are stopped and held responsible. I commend all the investigators who built this case for their meticulous and persistent efforts, and I am committed to using the evidence they gathered to obtain accountability."
New York City Police Department Commissioner Jessica S. Tisch said, "This was a calculated and shameless scheme. These individuals allegedly stole identities, forged documents, and scammed lenders out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in fraudulent loans and COVID relief funds. New Yorkers rely on the integrity of their financial institutions, and the NYPD remains committed to identifying and arresting those who seek to exploit them. I commend our investigators, the Secret Service and the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office for shutting this scheme down and holding these fraudsters accountable."
Patrick J. Freaney, U.S. Secret Service Special Agent in Charge at the New York Field Office, said, "The volitional criminality allegedly carried out by these defendants yielded massive fraudulent gains at the expense of unwitting victims. Such lucrative schemes require disruption, and that is exactly what this investigation brings. My thanks to our partners at the NYPD and the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office for building a compelling case and bringing accountability to this syndicate."
The District Attorney identified the defendants as Dacson Sears, 42, of Coney Island, Brooklyn, and Raymond Lyles (aka L.A. Ray), 41, of Mount Vernon, NY. Both are variously charged in an indictment with fourth-degree conspiracy, second-degree money laundering, first-degree scheme to defraud, third- and second-degree grand larceny, 17 counts of first-degree identity theft, 62 counts of first-degree falsifying business records and other related charges. The defendants were released without bail and ordered to return to court on Aug. 6, 2025.
The District Attorney stated that between Jan. 1, 2022, and Jan. 1, 2024, the defendants allegedly used the Social Security Numbers to create fraudulent documents in that person's name, such as a driver's license, bank account statements, payroll stubs, utility bills, real estate deeds and tax return forms. They also often opened or used email addresses in those persons' names.
It is alleged that after creating these identity profiles, the defendants opened new online financial accounts with various creditors and applied for personal loans through the new accounts without the consent or knowledge of the true persons. The creditors approved the loans, and the loan proceeds were thereafter disbursed. They also applied for and received debit cards that were mailed to addresses under their control. The funds from the loans were either quickly withdrawn using the debit cards or transferred to various other bank accounts the defendants controlled. They never paid back the loans, causing financial loss to the creditors.
The loan amounts ranged from $15,000 to $36,000, the evidence shows, with a total sum of approximately $416,000.